Apparatus for feeding webs of paper



March 10, 1953 w. E. JOHNSON ETAL 2,630,901

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING WEBS OF PAPER Filed Dec. 2, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 127 2e 29 a 29 25 40 26 f A /7 E'iig V, 7, V

l h I w 2 I A Horn e y W. E. JOHNSON ET AL APPARATUS FOR FEEDING WEBS OFPAPER March 1953 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 le Dec. 2, 1950 Attorney March 10,1953 w. E. JOHNSON ET AL APPARATUS FOR FEEDING WEBS OF PAPER 5Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Dec. 2, 1950 Attorney Patented Mar. 10, 1953APPARATUS FOR FEEDING WEBS OFPAPER.

William Edward. Johnson, London, and. Hubert. J 01in. Hillen, Shirley,Croydon, Englaniassignore. to Powers-Saunas Accounting Machines Limited,London, England, a British company Application December 2, 1950, SerialNo. 198,768: In Great Britain June. 6-, 195.0.

9 Claims. 1.

This invention relates to; apparatus for feed.- ingwebs of paper tostatistical. machines.

In statistical machines, such for example as tabulating machines, whichare controlled by perforated. records, data sensed from the records is.printed. on a web of paper which may consist of a plurality offormsseparated from each other by lines of; perforations permitting theforms. to be torn from the web. when completed. In some instances thepaper web. which is fed into the machine is provided with perforationsdisposed adjacent the longitudinal edges thereof, the perforations beingengaged by pins in a. rotatable platen to facilitate the feeding of thepaper to line printing position. Such a web, will hereinafter bereferred to as a. perforated web. In some instances, the paper web is a:plain web having no perforations adjacent the longitudinal edgesthereof,the web then. being fed to line printing position by positivelyrotatablefeeding rollers of which one. is the rotatable platen. A web having nofeed perforations. adjacent. its longitudinal edges to facilitate thefeeding thereof. to line printing positions will hereinafter be referredto as a. plain web! Paper feeding apparatus has previously been proposedwhereby av web or webs of continuous stationery can be fed.- tolineprinting. position relative to a-rotatable platen, the apparatusbeing convertible alternatively to feed a plain web by friction or tofeed. a. perforated web. by pin. type feeding means and ity is a mainobject of the present invention to provide improvements to an apparatusadapted to function in this manner.

One object of the present invention. is to provide means whereby whenthe paper feeding anparatus is conditioned to feed perforated paper theplaten can be disconnected. from. driving mechanism for the platen andthe pin type feeding means so. that it. can rotate freely about its axisduring operation of? thepin type feeding means thus ensuring that.feeding of the paper web is effected only by the pin type feedin means.

A further object of the present invention is; to provide means foreffecting axial adjustment of the pin wheels of the. pin type feedingmeans whereby the pin wheels may be brought into accurate alignment withthe perforations in the webs to be fed thereby even though, as sometimeshappens, the width of a web may vary from a standard.

A still further object of the invention. is to proviola a paper feedingapparatus which comprises a unit including the platen as an integerthereof and which can, be readily attached to or detached from astatistical machine. order that, if desired, some. other form. offeeding apparatus may be employed with the machine.

A. further. object of the invention is to. seconstruct a paper feedingapparatus. for feeding either plain orperforated webs. of a statisticalmachine. that the pin type. feeding means. op.- erates positively to.feed a web, both to and, from the. platen.

In order that. the. invention may be, clearly understood, an embodiment.thereof will now be described, by way of. example, with. reference. tothe. accompanying diagrammatic drawin s. in which:

Figure l is a front. elevation. oi apaper feeding unit according to theinvention,

Figure 2 shows, to an. enlarged scale, the. driving mechanism for theplaten and the. pin. wheel shaft,

Figure. 3 shows, to an enlarged scale, apart. of the coupling device forthe platen,

Figure 4 is a, section on. line Ill-Ill Figure 3,

Figure 5 is a. broken side elevation of the driving mechanism,

Figure, 6. is a. section on. line VI.VI,. Figure. 1,

Figure 7 is a view of the. parts shown in Figure 6. but with. some of.the parts. occupying different positions,

Figure 8 is a scrap view showing a detail of the unit, and

Figure. 9 is a side elevation of a part, of. the unit and shows thepressure rollers which co-operate with the platen when the unit isconditioned to feed plain paper.

Referring to th drawings, the paper feeding unit for attachment to. atabulating machine comprises a rotatable platen ;I, the platen beingsup.- ported by a platen supporting shaft 2 which extends lengthwisethereof and is. supported in bearings not shown, carried in platensupporting frames 3 connected by a back plate 4. To the bottom of theunit fixed a pair of slide. bars 5. t be engaged with similar bar shownin. chain line in Fig. 5, fixed to the main frame of the tabulatingmachine to which the paper feeding unit is to be fitted. Surrounding oneend of. the

a. pawl forming part. of the tabulating machine.

The, driving. gear wheel I is. provided on the face thereof which isadjacent to one end face of the platen I with two radially oppositedowel holes 9 the axes of which are parallel to the axis of rotation ofthe platen supporting shaft 2. The end face of the platen which isadjacent to the driving wheel I has extending therefrom a pair ofradially opposite dowel pins H3, these pins being adapted for engagementin the dowel holes 9 in the driving gear wheel 'i. The platen l isfreely rotatable on the platen supporting shaft 2 and is movable axiallywith respect thereto so that the dowel pins It may be moved into and outof engagement with the dowel holes 9 in the driving gear wheel. At theend of the platen opposite that from which the dowel pins project is aboss I l to which is pivoted a latch i2, Figures 3 and 4, the latchbeing arranged for engagement in one or other of two grooves I3, l4,extending peripherally around the platen supporting shaft 2. When thelatch I2 is located in the groove i l remote from the driving gear wheelas shown in Figure 1, the platen I is retained in a position such thatthe dowel pins Hl are out of engage ment with the dowel holes 9 in thedriving gear wheel I. When, however, the latch 12 is located in thegroove l3 nearer to the driving gear wheel, the platen is secured inposition with the dowels I9 located in the holes 9 in the driving gearwheel. It will, therefore, be understood that when the dowel pins I8 areengaged in the holes 9 of the driving gear wheel the platen I ispositively connected with the driving gear wheel 1 and is rotatabletherewith. When, however, the platen is latched so that the pins it! aredisengaged from the gear wheel, the platen is freely rotatable about theplaten supporting shaft 2 and the gear I is rendered ineffective todrive the platen.

A pin wheel shaft I5 is supported for rotation in auxiliary frame memberIE, I! disposed at the opposite ends thereof, the frame member I6 issupported by the platen supporting shaft 2 and the frame member I! issupported by the rotatable sleeve 6. The frame members It, I! are freelymounted for angular swinging movement about the axis of rotation of theplaten supporting shaft 2 and the pin wheel shaft I5 is substantiallyparallel with the axis of rotation of the platen supporting shaft 2, butdue to its being supported by the frames I6, I! it is eccentric to theshaft 2.

On the pin wheel shaft I5 are two paper feeding elements shown as pinwheels I8, I9 each adapted for rotation with the shaft I5 and adjustablerelatively one to the other axially of the shaft to accommodate paper ofdifferent widths. One pin wheel I9 is connected to the pin wheel shaft[5 for rotation therewith through the medium of a key, not shown, and ismovable lengthwise of the key to abut against an adjustable stop formedas a nut 26 mounted on a threaded portion 2! of the pin wheel shaft. Thepin wheel I9 is retained in endwise abutting relation with the stop by aspring 22 which is anchored at one end 23, Figure 1, to the pin wheelshaft and at its other end engages the pin wheel I9.

The pin wheel I8 has a boss 24 formed on the side thereof which isremote from the pin wheel I9 and fitted to the boss is a latch 25 which,in known manner, can be engaged in one of a plurality of notches 26formed in the periphery of the pin wheel shaft I5. Each of the pinwheels is provided with a plurality of feeding pins 2! which extendradially from the pin wheels and are spaced at equi-spaced distancesaround the periphery thereof. These pins are provided ta engage in theaforesaid perforations formed in a perforated web being fed to and fromline printing position. The notches 26 are provided at predeterminedintervals along the length of the pin wheel shaft I5, so that byadjusting the po sition of the pin wheel I8 with respect to the pinwheel i5: different standard widths of paper can be accommodated by thefeeding apparatus.

In an alternative construction, the notches 26 may be equi-spaced alongthe shaft I5, the spacing being relatively close, for example of theorder of one-half of an inch, and the threaded portion 2! is then of alength such that the nut 23 can be adjusted axially of the shaft for adistance at least equal to the spacing between two notches 26.

As is well understood in the art, difficulty is sometimes experiencedwhen feeding paper webs, particularly when feeding perforated webs, dueto the fact that temperature and hygrometric conditions cause variationsin the widths of different reels of paper. In order that thesevariations from standard width may be accommodated by the apparatuswithout the pins 27 damaging the perforations in the web, adjustment ofthe pin wheels to accommodate these small variations from standard widthas between different webs is effected by adjustment of the stop 26against which the pin wheel I9 abuts. By adjusting the stop 20 on thescrew thread 2! it will be readily understood that the pin wheel 28 canbe adjusted axially of the pin wheel shaft G5 with respect to the pinwheel I8 within relatively fine limits.

Between the pin wheels l8, is there are provided two rotatable guidemembers 23, these guide members being freely rotatable about the pinwheel shaft I5 and retained in spaced relation with respect to eachother and to the pin wheels by springs 28 which extend therebetween andencircle the pin wheel shaft.

Rotation of the pin wheel shaft I5 is effected by the driving gear wheelI through the medium of an idler gear wheel 30 and a second gear wheel3! secured to the pin wheel shaft. The idler gear wheel 30 is supportedby the auxiliary frame iii. The paper web P, Figures 6 and '7, is guidedto and from printing position by stationary guide members comprisingthree plates 33, 34, spaced apart from each other so that the portion ofthe paper Web moving to printing position passes between the plates 32,33 and the portion of the paper web moving away from printing positionmoves between the plates 33, 3'1. At a position between the stationaryguide plates 32, 33, 34 and the platen I there is provided a furthernormally stationary guide plate 35 over which paper passing to printingposition is moved, and this plate 35 has an aperture 36 formed thereinthrough which the pins 21 on the pin wheels IS, IS pass. Thus, the paperweb is positively moved towards printing position by the engagement ofpins 2'! in the perforationsprm vided near the longitudinal edges of thepaper.

As the paper moves away from printing position,

it is again engaged by the pins 27 of the pin wheels l8, I9, so that itis positively moved away from printing position and while it is soengaged it is moved under normally stationary guide elements 3'1, theseelements being partly of arcuate form to conform with the configurationof the pin wheels and having slots 38 formed therein. through which thepins 21 of the pin wheels pass; The paper guide elements 3'! arepivotally mounted on slides 38 arranged for sliding movement in a slot40 extending lengthwise of a stationary bar 4I supported by theauxiliary frames ES, IT. By this means the guide elements 31 can bemoved with the pin wheels lengthwise of the direction of the axis ofrotation thereof so that the pins 27 pass through the slots 38 in theguide elements 37' at all positions of the pin wheels I8, I9. The guideplate 35, Figure 5, is supported by the back plate 4 on a stud 35a whichis slidable in a slot extending lengthwise of the back plate so that theguide plate 35 can be moved relatively thereto to permit its position tobe adjusted according to the position of the pin wheel 18. A spring 35bbetween the backplate 4 and the guide plate 35 acts to retain the plate35 in the desired position.

The back of the bar tI is of arcuate form, as shown in Figures 6 and 7,and provides a guide surface to direct the portion of the web which ismoving away from printing position towards the middle and outerstationary plates 33, 34. To ensure that the portion of the perforatedweb being moved from the printing position leaves the surface of therotatable paper feeding elements, stripper plates 42 are providedbeneath the adjustable guide elements 3?, the strippers 32 being mountedfor movement with the elements 31, engaging the peripheral surfaces ofthe pin wheels I8, I9 and serving positively to guide the paper towardsthe arcuate surface of stationary bar 4|.

The auxiliary frames I6, I? in which the pin wheel shaft I is rotatablehave locating pins 43, 44' projecting laterally therefrom, these pinsbeing adapted for location in slots 45 formed in latches 46, 41 pivotedto the frames 3. A spring 48, Figure 8, urges the latches against fixedstops 49 and the pin wheel's IE, IS are in feeding position when thepins 43, 4 4 are located in the slots 45 in the latches 46, 41. When,however, it is desired to thread a fresh web of paper through theapparatus or otherwise to service the apparatus, the latches 46, 4? canbe moved about their pivots 56 so that the pins 43, i i are moved out ofthe slots 45 and the auxiliary frames I6, I! are then swung about theplaten supporting shaft 2 to a position at which the pin wheels areclear of their feeding position, as shown in Figure 7', and, in thisposition, they can be retained by the location of the pin M in a notch5I formed in an extension of the latch 47.

As is usual in paper web feeding mechanism one or more pressure rollers52, Figures 1 and 9, extending lengthwise of the platen i is or areprovided on a pivot spindle 53, this roller or rollers in known mannerserving, together with further pressure rollers 54, to press the paperagainst the platen at a position in advance of the line printingposition and being employed to co-operate with the platen I when a plainweb is to be frictionally fed to line printing position The pressureroller or rollers 54 are carried on a pivot spindle 55' which iscontrolled by a lever 58 secured to the spindle. In Figure 9 the rollers52, 54 are shown in their inactive positions to permit feeding to beeffected by the pin wheels 58, I9 and they are moved to and from activeposition by a plate 5''! having slots 53, 59 disposed about fixed guidepins 60, 61-. The slot 58' is of inverted L-shape and when the rollers52, 54 are to be rendered active the plate 5'! is rocked about the pinBI until the pin 69 is located in the vertical portion of the slot 53''and the plate is: then raised until the pins 69, 6! are located at thebottoms of their respective slots 58, 59. During the upward movement ofthe plate 5-1 a stud 62 6 carried thereby is moved upwards permittingthe rollers 52 to move into engagement with the platen I and the noseportion 63. of: the. plate moves relative to the lever 56. so that therollers 54 are also moved into engagement with the platen.

In operation, if it is: desired to employ the paper feeding mechanismfor the. purpose of feeding a perforated web, the platen I- is movedaxially, to the right as viewed in Figure 1, so that it is disengagedfrom the driving gear wheel 7 and the latch I2 associated with theplaten is then located in the peripheral groove I4 formed in the platensupporting shaft 2 and the plate 57 is moved to the position shown inFigure 9 so that the pressure rollers 52, 54 are rendered inactive.Accordingly, the platen I is freely rotatable and the feeding of the webis effected solely by the pins 21 on the pin wheels I8, I9. The pinwheels are adjusted axially of the pin wheel shaft. I5 to accommodatethe width of paper to be fed by the apparatus and, if necessary,adjustment of the stop 20 is effected to compensate for minor variationsin the width of the web from the standard width thereof. When theapparatus is in operation, the pins 2'! on the pin wheels operate asdescribed above positively to feed the paper web both towards and awayfrom the platen.

If it should be desired to feed a plain web through the apparatus, thepin wheels are spaced lengthwise along the pin wheel shaft I5 so thatthey serve as guides for the paper web which then engages thoseperipheral surfaces of the pin wheels which arev between the pinsextending radially therefrom. To facilitate the positioning of the pinwheels for this purpose, with the con struction shown in the drawings,the notches 2% in the pin wheel shaft I5 are disposed in pairs axiallyof the shaft and the latch 25 on the pin wheel I8 is located in thesecond notch of a pair.

The platen I is moved axially so that the dowel pins it extending fromthe end thereof are engaged in the dowel. holes 9 in the driving gearwheel I and the paper is threaded between the platen I and the pressureroller or rollers 52, 54., After which the rollers 52, 56 are moved totheir active positions by adjustment of the plate 51' as describedabove. As the platen is. now coupled with the driving gear wheel I forpositive rotation thereby the platen I and the pressure rollers 52 actfrictionally to feed the plain web to and from line printing positionin, the usual manner. while the frame. members. It, ll occupy thepositions which they occupy when the pin wheels I8, t9 are conditionedfor a feeding operation thereby. It is to be,v understood that theapparatus. is so constructed, that the. frame mom" hers, It, I! are.always in their active positions during a paper feeding operation bothwhen the apparatus is conditioned for pin wheel feeding or for frictionfeeding because otherwise the type bars of the. tabulating machinewouldv foul the apparatus and the. paper moving away from. the platen.In the event that the frame members should inadvertently be left intheir inactive position prior to. the. start of a friction feedingoperation the construction is such that the latches will not retain theframe members in the inactive position when the paper is tensioned overthe guide rollers 28 and the frame members will accordingly be restoredto active position by the tensioning of the paperover the. guiderollers.

If it is desired that the frame members be not active position during afriction feeding operation the frames [5, l1 supporting the shaft I5 onwhich the pin wheels are mounted may be so constructed as to bedetachable from association with the platen supporting shaft 2, therebypermitting the frames 16, I! and the pin wheel shaft 15 together withthe pin wheels l8, 9 to be removed bodily from the paper feedingapparatus when the apparatus is to be employed for feeding a plain web.

We claim:

1. In apparatus for feeding continuous stationery, the combination withfrictional paper feeding means including a rotatable platen, and pintype paper feeding means, the paper feeding means being arranged forselective operation independently one of the other to feed continuousstationery to an impression receiving position with relation to theplaten, of driving mechanisrn common to the platen and the pin typefeeding means and including a gear wheel to rotate said platen, a platenshaft supporting the platen for movement axially thereof and for angularmovement relative to said gear wheel, and a coupling device selectivelyoperable to connect the platen to said gear wheel for rotation therebywhen the frictional feeding means is selected for operation and topermit the platen to be movable angularly relative to said gear wheelwhen the pin type feeding means is selected for operation.

2. In apparatus for feeding continuous stationery, the combination withfrictional paper feeding means including a rotatable platen, and pintype paper feeding means, the paper feeding means being arranged forselective operation independently one of the other to feed continuousstationery to an impression receiving position with relation to theplaten, of a first gear wheel freely rotatable about the axis ofrotation of the platen, a platen shaft supporting the platen formovement axially thereof and for angular movement relative to said firstgear wheel, a second gear wheel mounted for rotation with the pin typefeeding means, an idler gear wheel connecting said first and second gearwheels, a dowel and dowel hole connection between said first gear wheeland platen whereby rotation of the platen is effected by said first gearwheel, and latching means selectively operable to locate the platen in aposition such that the dowel and dowel hole connection is effective totransmit rotation of said first gear wheel to the platen or to locatethe platen in a position such that the dowels are disengaged from thedowel holes to permit angular movement of the platen relative to saidfirstgear wheel when the pin type feeding means is selected foroperation.

3. For a statistical machine, a unit for feeding continuous stationerycomprising in combination, a platen support for connection to the frameof a statistical machine, a platen shaft rotatably mounted in saidsupport, a platen mounted for movement lengthwise of the platen shaft,pressure rollers mounted for movement into and out of contact with theplaten whereby stationery can be fed by friction between the platen andsaid rollers, an auxiliary frame supported about said platen shaft, apin wheel shaft rotatably mounted in said auxiliary frame, a pair of pinwheels mounted on said pin wheel shaft for adjustment axially thereforand rotation therewith, the pin wheels being supported by said pin wheelshaft to be eccentric to said platen, stationary engaging pins extendingradially from the pin wheels, a first gear wheel freely rotatable aboutthe platen shaft, a second gear wheel mounted on the pin wheel shaft forrotation therewith, an idler gear wheel mounted on said auxiliary frameand connecting said first and second gear wheels, a dowel and dowel holeconnection between said first gear wheel and platen whereby rotation ofthe platen is effected by said first gear wheel, latching grooves formedin the platen shaft and spaced apart axially thereof to determine theaxial position of the platen relative to said first gear wheel, and alatch carried by said platen to engage in a selected one of saidlatching grooves and thereby retain the platen in selected axialrelation with respect to the first gear wheel so that the dowel anddowel hole connection is effective to permit rotation of the platen bythe first gear wheel or is rendered ineffective to permit angular movement of the platen relative to said first gear wheel.

4. For a statistical machine, a unit for feeding continuous stationerycomprising in combination, a platen support for connection to the frameof a statistical machine, a platen shaft rotatably mounted in saidsupport, a platen mounted for movement lengthwise of the platen shaft,pressure rollers mounted for movement into and out of contact with theplaten whereby stationery can be fed by friction between the platen andsaid rollers, an auxiliary frame supported by said platen shaft, a pinwheel shaft rotatably mounted in said auxiliary frame, a pair of pinwheels mounted on said pin wheel shaft for adjustment axially thereofand rotation therewith, the pin wheels being supported by said pin wheelshaft to be eccentric to said platen and one of said pin wheels beingsplined to the pin wheel shaft to be slidable axially thereof,stationary engaging pins extending radially from the pin wheels, anadjustable stop screwed on to the pin wheel shaft, a spring encirclingthe pin wheel shaft and acting to urge the splined pin wheel intoendwise abutting engagement with the stop to permit adjustment of thepin wheel axially of the shaft by rotation of the stop relative to theshaft, a first gear wheel freely rotatable about the platen shaft, asecondgear Wheel mounted on the pin wheel shaft for rotation therewith,an idler gear wheel mounted on said auxiliary frame and connecting saidfirst and second gear Wheels, a dowel and dowel hole connection betweensaid first gear wheel and platen whereby rotation of the platen iseffected by said first gear wheel, latching grooves formed in the platenshaft and spaced apart axially thereof to determine the axial positionof the platen relative to said first gear wheel, and a latch carried bysaid platen to engage in a selected one of said latching grooves andthereby retain-the platen in selected axial relation with respect to thefirst gear wheel so that the dowel and dowel hole connection iseffective to permit rotation of the platen by the first gear wheel or isrendered ineffective so that the platen is movable angularly relative tosaid first gear wheel when the pin wheels are selected for a feedingoperation.

5. For a statistical machine, a unit for feeding continuous stationerycomprising in combination, a platen support for connection to the frameof a, statistical machine, a platen shaft rotatably mounted in saidsupport, a platen mounted for movement lengthwise of the platen shaft.pressure rollers mounted for movement into and out of contact with theplaten whereby stationery can be fed by friction between the platen andsaid rollers, an auxiliary frame supported about said platen shaft, apin wheel shaft rotatabh mounted in said auxiliary frame, a pair of pinwheels mounted on said pin wheel shaft for adjustment axially thereofand rotation therewith, the pin wheels being supported by said pin wheelshaft to be eccentric to said platen and one of said pin wheels beingsplined to the pin wheel shaft to be slidable axially thereof,stationary engaging pins extending radially from the pin wheels, anadjustable stop screwed on to the pin wheel shaft, a spring encirclingthe pin wheel shaft and acting to urge the splined pin wheel intoendwise abutting engagement with the stop to permit adjustment of thepin wheel axially of the shaft by rotation of the stop relative to theshaft, a first stationary slotted paper guide with which the pins of apin wheel co-operate to feed paper to the platen, a second stationarypaper guide with which the pins of a pin wheel co-operate to feed paperaway from the platen, a first gear wheel freely rotatable about theplaten shaft, a second gear wheel mountedon the pin wheel shaft forrotation therewith, an idler gear wheel mounted on said auxiliary frameand connecting said first and second gear wheels, a dowel and dowel holeconnection between said first gear wheel and platen whereby rotation ofthe platen is effected by said first gear wheel, latching grooves formedin the platen shaft and spaced apart axially thereof to determine theaxialposition of the platen relative tosaid first gear wheel, and alatch carried by said platen to engage in a selected one of saidlatching grooves and thereby retain the platen in selected axialrelation with respect to the first gear wheel so that the dowel anddowel hole connection is effective to permit rotation of the platen bythe first gear wheel or to permit angular movement between the platenand said first gear wheel.

6. For a statistical machine, a unit for feeding continuous stationerycomprising in combitlon, a platen support for connection to the frame ofa statistical machine, a platen shaft rotatably mounted in said support,a platen freely rotatable about the platen shaft and mounted formovement lengthwise thereof, pressure rollers mounted for movement intoand out of contact with the platen whereby stationery can be fed byfriction between the platen and said rollers, an auxiliary framesupported by said platen shaft, a pin wheel shaft rotatably mounted insaid auxiliary frame, a pair of pin wheels mounted on said pin wheelshaft for adjustment axially thereof and rotation therewith, the pinwheels being supported by said pin wheel shaft to be eccentric to saidplaten and one of said pin wheels being splined to the pin wheel shaftto be slidable axially thereof, stationary engaging pins extendingradially from the pin wheels, an adjustable stop screwed on to the pinwheel shaft, a spring encircling the pin wheel shaft and acting to urgethe splined pin wheel into endwise abutting engagement with the stop topermit adjustment of the pin wheel axially of the shaft by rotation ofthe stop relative to the shaft, a locating pin extending laterally fromsaid auxiliary frame, a spring-controlled latch pivoted to the platensupport and provided with two notches respectively to receive saidlocating pin and locate the pin wheel shaft in feeding position withrelation to the platen or to retain the pin wheel shaft in a positiononly to permit threading of stationery through the apparatus orservicing thereof, a first gear wheel fr el rotata e abo t the late Shaa s o d gear wheel mounted on the pin wheel shaft'for rotationtherewith, an idler gear wheel mounted on said auxiliary frame andconnecting said first and second gear wheel's, a dowel and dowel holeconnection between said first gear wheel and platen whereby rotation ofthe platen is effected by said first gear wheel, latching grooves formedin the platen shaft and spaced apart axially thereof to determine theaxial position of the platen relative to said first gear wheel, and alatch carried by said platen to'engage in a selected one of saidlatching grooves and thereby retain the platen in selected axialrelation with respect to the firstgear wheel so that the dowel and dowelhole connection is effective to permit rotation of the platen by thefirst gear wheel or is rendered ineffective so that the platen is freelyrotatable about th'eplaten shaft.

7. For a statistical machine, a unit for feeding continuous stationerycomprising in combination, a platen support for connection to the frameof a statistical machine, a platen shaft rotatably mounted in saidsupport, a platen freely rotatable about the platen shaft and mountedfor movement lengthwise thereof, pressure rollers mounted for movementinto and out of contact with the platen whereby stationery can be fed byfriction between the platen and said rollers, an auxiliary framesupported by said platen shaft, a pin wheel shaft rota-tably mounted insaid auxiliary frame, a pair of pin wheels mounted on said pin wheelshaftfor adjustment axially thereof "and rotation therewith, the pinwheels being supported by said pin wheel shaft to be eccentric to saidplaten and one of said pin wheels being splined to the pin wheel shaftto be slidable axially thereof, stationary engaging pins extendingradially from the pin wheels, an adjustable stop screwed on to the pinwheel shaft, a spring encircling the pin wheel shaft and acting to urgethe splined pin wheel into endwise abutting engagement with the stop topermit adjustment of the pin wheel axially of the shaft by rotation ofthe stop relative to the shaft, paper guides freely rotatable on the pinwheel shaft and disposed between the pin wheels, springs encircling theplaten shaft and disposed between the paper guides and the pin wheels tomaintain the paper guides in axially spaced relation with respect toeach other and to the pin wheels, a first stationary slotted paper guidewith which the pins of a pin wheel 00- operate to feed paper to theplaten, a second stationary paper guide with which the pins of a pinwheel co-operate to feed paper from the platen, a stationary stripperengaging the surface of a pin wheel beneath said second stationary paperguide to ensure stripping of a paper web from the pins of the pin wheel,a first gear wheel freely rotatable about the platen shaft, a secondgear wheel mounted on the pin wheel shaft for rotation therewith, anidler gear wheel mounted on said auxiliary frame and connecting saidfirst and second gear wheels, a dowel and dowel hole connection betweensaid first gear wheel and platen whereby rotation of the platen iseffected by said first gear wheel, latching grooves formed in the platenshaft and spaced apart axially thereof to determine the axial positionof the platen relative to said first gear wheel, a latch carried by saidplaten to engage in a selected one of said latching grooves and therebyretain the platen in selected axial relation with respect to the firstgear wheel so that the dowel and dowel hole connection is effective topermit rotation of the platen by the first gear wheel or is renderedinefieotive so that the platen is freely rotatable about the platenshaft, a pin extending laterally from said auxiliary frame and aspring-controlled latch pivoted to the platen support and provided withtwo notches respectively to receive said locating pin and locate the pinwheel shaft in feeding position with relation to the platen or to retainthe pin wheel shaft in a position only to permit threading of stationerythrough the apparatus or servicing thereof.

8. Apparatus for feeding continuous stationery and including a rotatableplaten, pressure rollers cooperating with the platen to permitstationery to be frictionally fed thereby, rotatable pin type feedingmeans for feeding stationery independently of the platen and pressurerollers, and a gear train connecting the platen and pin type feedingmeans to effect rotation thereof in like feeding directions,characterised by the platen being supported on a platen shaft forrotation by one gear wheel of said train and for movement lengthwisethereof, means to effect mating engagement between an end of the platenand a side of said one gear wheel whereby the platen is rotatable by thegear wheel, latch means carried by the platen for engagement with one orother of two grooves in said shaft and spaced apart along the axisthereof so that when the latch means is located in one said groove theplaten is mated with said one gear for rotation thereby and when locatedin the other groove the platen is disengaged from the gear for angularmovement relative thereto by frictional engagement between the platenand stationery fed by said pin type feeding means, and means fordisengaging said pressure rollers from the platen when the pin typefeeding means is operative.

9. Apparatus according to claim 8 further characterised in that theplaten shaft is supported for rotation in a platen support forconnection to the frame of a statistical machine, the pin type feedingmeans is supported for rotation in an auxiliary frame supported aboutsaid shaft, and latch means is pivoted on the platen support to locatethe auxiliary frame in relation thereto.

WILLIAM EDWARD JOHNSON. HUBERT JOHN HILLEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,110,855 Fyfe et a1 Mar. 15,1938 2,268,891 Mueller Jan. 6, 1942 2,285,197 Euth June 2, 19422,293,769 Sherman Aug. 25, 1942 2,311,051 Hope Feb. 16, 1943 2,355,668Morse Aug. 15, 1944 2,393,471 Johnson Jan. 22, 1946 2,400,226 Euth May14, 1946

